Mike Elko says Texas A&M is ready to bounce back from Texas loss: ‘Our guys are fired up’
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Mike Elko appeared on The Pat McAfee Show on Friday afternoon to talk about the painful loss to Texas that Texas A&M just experienced and how he expects that loss to spur his Aggies on in the upcoming College Football Playoff.
Texas A&M is the 7 seed and will host 10 seed Miami next Saturday at Kyle Field in a noon ET kickoff on ABC and ESPN. Elko’s Aggies take an 11-1 record into the Playoff, but it could’ve been even better. Texas A&M won its first 11 games of the season and was primed for a spot in the SEC title game before it suffered that first and only loss of the year against hated rival Texas on Black Friday.
Naturally, Elko didn’t want to lose that game. He wanted to be 12-0 and headed to Atlanta. It didn’t happen, of course, but Elko said Friday the loss to the Longhorns is something his team can use as motivation going into the Playoff. He’s a very confident head coach going into the biggest game of the season in 1 week.
“I think our guys are fired up. It’s hard to run the table. Unfortunately for us, (the loss) happened in the last game with a chance to go to Atlanta on the line, against our rival. That’s not what you want,” Mike Elko said. “In our minds, we feel like we got (the loss) out of the way. Now it’s time to go get it. We’re excited to have Miami in here.”
And 1 week from now, College Station will be bracing for Playoff football, with the Canes coming to Kyle Field and Texas A&M trying to make sure that Texas loss doesn’t spill into a game that will mean much more.
It’ll mean everything for Elko and his guys as they try to bounce back and go on a postseason run.
Cory Nightingale, a former sportswriter and sports editor at the Miami Herald and Palm Beach Post, is a South Florida-based freelance writer who covers Alabama for SaturdayDownSouth.com.
